White-knuckle sobriety refers to the practice of desperately holding onto sobriety without working a recovery program. Many programs stress the impossibility of maintaining sobriety by sheer force of will, but there are some—few and far between—who can for some time. The problem with white-knuckling sobriety is that it does not allow one to address all…
For many years, alcohol use disorder, or alcoholism, has been known as a threefold disease that affects the mind, body, and spirit. Within the disease, three parts are referred to as the spiritual malady, the physical allergy, and the mental obsession. These components, in conjunction, make up the disease of alcohol addiction, as defined by…
If you’ve ever heard the phrase “one day at a time,” you may have wondered exactly what that means in recovery. At face value, it seems quite simple—we don’t drink or use drugs during our day, without considering whether we will or will not tomorrow. However, “one day at a time” is more complex and…
What would a sober St. Patrick’s Day mean to you? Any sober holiday is a big deal for men and women battling addiction. It means finding joy in that holiday but not having to turn to alcohol or drugs to do so. That may be what you used to do, but today, you have a…
Most illegal substances have unseen physical health effects. Rarely do we consider the potential health risks to our bodies if they are not externally apparent. Nearly every illegal substance negatively affects the heart in both short and long terms ways. Stimulants may be the most dangerous class of drugs for our hearts. Drug abuse and…
Addiction takes its toll on the body. One way it does so is by disrupting sleep patterns. Depending on the substance abuse one is struggling with, individuals can find themselves sleeping too much, experiencing distressed or erratic sleep, or suffer from insomnia. All of these put undue stress upon the body that has been known…
For individuals struggling with a substance use disorder, whether drugs or alcohol, recovery takes time. Even when an individual finds treatment and is able to heal from the disease of addiction, they still need support to maintain their sobriety. One way to work at staying sober is through practicing holistic therapies like yoga. Understanding the…
As a component of your recovery, you may begin receiving individual counseling from a therapist. One of the techniques your therapist might employ is motivational interviewing, which is useful in helping people with addictions to move from a state of uncertainty into a state of action. This is accomplished by helping you to identify and…
As you begin to thrive in recovery, a whole new world is unfolding before you. Living life to the fullest is now a reality, instead of a gift only bestowed on “other people.” Your future is now. It’s important that you celebrate your successes and your milestones in recovery. You’ve begun to make deep connections…
Health and wellbeing are the foundation for all things in our lives. In recovery, we hear the words body, mind and spirit or body, mind, and soul on a regular basis. We read these words on the internet. We hear them in recovery meetings, and we hear them in spiritual gatherings. Simply defined they mean…